My first trip to Chile began with a trip to the snowless Andes Mountain range, during mid summer. The road to the top of the Andes from Santiago had more hairpins than a Miss America contestant. Seriously, the road bent and turned, slamming us against each other or the van’s side panels. My insides felt like I had a load of laundry on spin cycle. After 90 grueling minutes the van finally reached the top, where two-mile high air did not provide much relief for my sea level lungs. Our guide told us to watch the skies for condors, and I did. Updrafts swept up the steep valley sides to create a perfect place to watch several of the large South American Condors. Andean condor (Vultur gryphus) the Andean condor has a maximum wingspan of 3.2 m (10 ft 6 in) making it one of the largest flying birds on Earth. Only four seabirds exceed the Condor’s wing span.